By the time Kakashi finished preparing dinner, it was almost dark.
He went into the backyard to call the other two inside to eat.
There, he saw Rin holding a wooden sword and sparring with his father.
Rin was attacking while his father remained on the defensive.
There was nothing surprising about Sakumo’s performance.
Every movement was flawless, and he effortlessly parried all of Rin’s attacks.
This was the strength expected of the commander of the ANBU—Konoha’s White Fang.
However, Rin’s performance left Kakashi deeply shocked.
The same wooden sword that had seemed harmless in Kakashi’s hands radiated a sharp and dangerous intensity when Rin wielded it.
This difference didn’t come from physical strength.
It came from combat experience and offensive technique.
Every movement Rin made appeared to have been refined through thousands of repetitions.
Her attacks were not only elegant but also extraordinarily efficient and deadly.
If the person standing opposite her had been Kakashi rather than his father…
would he have been able to withstand those attacks?
Sweat gathered on Kakashi’s forehead.
Rin’s swordsmanship was particularly similar to the style Kakashi usually practiced.
Yet she performed many techniques he still struggled to master with exceptional skill and maturity.
Kakashi suddenly felt an enormous gap between them.
He was normally the one who sparred with his father.
He had inherited the Hatake clan’s swordsmanship, yet Rin had now completely surpassed him.
Kakashi suddenly felt his pride suffer a small setback.
He had always been called a genius, receiving endless praise wherever he went.
As a result, he had gradually become somewhat complacent.
But now that he had come to his senses, he realized that he was nowhere near Rin’s level.
At that moment, Rin launched another attack.
Sakumo easily parried it, caught Rin’s wooden sword with his own, and pressed downward, firmly pinning her weapon in place.
Taking advantage of the pause, Sakumo said, “That’s enough. We’ll stop here for today.”
Rin nodded and ended her attack.
During her spar with Sakumo, Rin felt that she had made significant progress.
The experience she had received was gradually becoming fully integrated with her own abilities.
Now, even without relying on instinct, she could consciously use ANBU Assassination Swordsmanship.
“At your age… such an achievement is terrifying. Even I find it difficult to comprehend.”
“You are the most talented person I have ever encountered. Even Kakashi cannot compare to you.”
Jōnin!
Rin was stunned.
Within Konoha’s shinobi ranking system, jōnin represented the village’s strongest shinobi beneath the Hokage.
She asked in disbelief:
“Lord White Fang, is my… swordsmanship truly at the level of a jōnin?”
Sakumo replied, “That is merely a conservative estimate. Perhaps… it has already surpassed the swordsmanship of an average jōnin.”
As though realizing that Rin might misunderstand, he paused before reminding her, “However, a shinobi’s rank isn’t determined solely by swordsmanship. Your physical conditioning, chakra reserves, and ninjutsu repertoire are still far, far below those of a jōnin.”
“Don’t become complacent because of this. In your current state, even an ordinary Konoha chūnin could easily defeat you.”
Rin felt slightly disappointed.
She had thought that she had suddenly become extremely powerful, but it turned out that she was still weak.
The notebook had been right.
Compared to her former self, she had become much stronger, but compared to the entire shinobi world, her strength remained insignificant.
But…
what rank did the young Uchiha belong to?
Rin suddenly became curious.
There was an excellent point of reference for estimating his strength: the two Uchiha with three-tomoe Sharingan whom he had instantly killed.
Rin couldn’t help seizing the opportunity to ask:
“Lord White Fang, how strong is an average Uchiha who possesses the three-tomoe Sharingan?”
She paused, worried that Sakumo might see through her intentions, and quickly offered an explanation.
“Obito is always boasting that his clan’s three-tomoe Sharingan is extremely powerful.”
Sakumo smiled slightly.
“Actually… Obito Uchiha is correct. The Uchiha clan’s three-tomoe Sharingan is indeed extremely powerful.”
“Even among jōnin, an Uchiha with those eyes would be considered one of the most difficult opponents to face. The Sharingan… is almost unreasonably powerful.”
Rin was stunned.
She had always known that the three-tomoe Sharingan was powerful, but she had never possessed a clear standard by which to measure it.
A jōnin was, in the truest sense, one of the pillars supporting a village.
When Lady Tsunade earned her title as one of Konoha’s Legendary Sannin, her official rank had still been jōnin, although few people now referred to her by that rank.
If an Uchiha with the three-tomoe Sharingan was extremely difficult to defeat even among jōnin, then how powerful was the young man with the Mangekyō Sharingan who had instantly killed two of them?
Rin couldn’t help asking:
“Lord White Fang, do you think anyone could instantly kill two Uchiha with three-tomoe Sharingan?”
Sakumo was startled, not having expected Rin to ask such a question.
He smiled slightly.
“Is that another boast Obito Uchiha told you?” Visit novelping.com for the full chapter.
“Kakashi has told me that he… occasionally likes to exaggerate.”
“Even for another jōnin, fighting one of them head-on would be unwise, let alone fighting two at once.”
“Instantly killing both of them would be extremely unlikely.”
Extremely unlikely!
That was the assessment given by Konoha’s White Fang.
However, Rin had personally witnessed precisely that happen inside the notebook’s text adventure.
Rin’s breathing quickened.
She wanted to continue asking questions but worried that doing so might be impolite.
Kakashi, however, couldn’t help interjecting.
“Then what about you, Father? Could you do it?”
Sakumo glanced at Kakashi.
“Kakashi, don’t turn everything into a competition or constantly compare yourself to others.”
Kakashi persisted.
“Father, I only want an answer.”
Seeing this, Sakumo sighed helplessly.
After thinking for a moment, he slowly replied, “It would depend on the circumstances.”
“If the two Uchiha were on guard and fought cautiously, defeating them wouldn’t be easy even for me.”
“But if we encountered each other suddenly on a battlefield and immediately entered close combat—or if I ambushed them…”
Sakumo paused, making Kakashi and Rin even more curious.
Finally, he calmly said, “Even if their eyes could see through all my movements, their bodies wouldn’t be fast enough to react.”
Although Sakumo hadn’t answered directly, his meaning was obvious.
Kakashi narrowed his eyes slightly.
“But Father, you’re also a jōnin. You just said that Uchiha with three-tomoe Sharingan are among the most difficult opponents at the jōnin level.”
Sakumo replied, “Yes, my official rank is indeed jōnin. However… there are considerable differences in strength even among jōnin.”
“Although it isn’t an officially recognized rank, there is an informal level of power above ordinary jōnin.”
“It can be described as Kage-level strength—the level reached by the strongest of the elite jōnin.”
Kage!
Rin’s eyes widened.
Did that mean strength comparable to Lord Hokage?
It represented the pinnacle of power—a shinobi standing above tens of thousands of others within their village.
Lord Sakumo possessed Kage-level strength!
No wonder there was so much support for Konoha’s White Fang to become the next Hokage!